Shoe lasting machine



Aug. 21, 1934. w. 1. BARNES SHOE LASTING MACHINE Filed June 25. 1931 5Sheets-Sheet l 1934- w. l. BARNES SHOE LASTING MACHINE Filed June 25,1931 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 [iimui IN VENTOR r15 726$ 2'54 RNEY 1934- w. 1.BARNES 1,970,684

SHOE LASTIVNG MACHINE Filed June 25, 1931 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Il-l||||||llllllll M" W! ll,

Wim

II In llll f' i 11v VE/VTOR Wicrli iarnas 1934- w. l. BARNES 1,970,684

SHOE LASTING MACHINE Filed June 25, 1931 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 HIIIII'IIIIIIITTORNEY 3 w. I. BARNES SHOE LASTING' MACHINE Filed June 25, 1931 5Sheets-Sheet 5 [N VEN TOR r lfiarnes Patented Aug. 21, 1934 snot LASTINGMACHINE Walter I. Barnes, Rochester, assignorof V one-half to Lee B.Carpenter, Rochester, N. Y.

pplication June 25, 1931, Serial No; Maser- 21 Claims.

My present invention relates to the manufacture of shoes and moreparticularly to the lasting thereof, so far as is concerned theoperation of stretching and forming the upper upon the last, 95 and theinvention has for one of its objects to provide an improved machine formanipulating the upper so that, in a rapid and efficient manner, thestretching tension upon the material of the upper will be equalized inall directions without unnecessary strain in any one direction, so thatthe upper of the shoe will retain a shape that is exactly true to theconformation of the last.

To these and other ends, the invention resides in certain improvementsand combinations of parts, all as will be hereinafter more fullydescribed, the novel features being pointed out in the claims at the endof the specification;

In the drawings: Fig. l is a side elevation of a lasting machine, brokenaway at top and bottom, constructed in accordance with and illustratingone embodiment tion of the machine, the lower portion being broken away;v

Fig. i is a side view of the treadles or operating elements; v

Fig. 5 is an enlarged detailed section through the upper gripping jawsin open position taken substantially on the line 5-5 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 6 is a similar view with the upper gripping jaws in closed positiontaken substantially on the line6-6 of Fig. 2;

Fig. '7 is an enlarged horizontal section taken substantially on theline 77 of Fig. 3;

stantially on the line 88 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 9 is an enlarged detailed vertical section through one of thelateral clamping devices;

Fig. 10 is an enlarged section through one of the upper grippingmechanisms taken substantially on the line 18-10 of Fig. 8;

Fig. 11 is an elevation of one of the upper gripping jaws in detail;

Fig. 12 is a fragmentary top plan view of the operating ends of the foottreadles,

Fig. 13 is an enlarged detail section taken vertis cally throughthecarriage of the clamping means.

Fig. 1-4 is a detail section on the line l4-l4 of Fig. 13, and n Fig. 15is a plan View of a last in position in the machine,showinganuppersecured thereon in a manner adapting it to be manipulatedin the machine illustrated; and in accordance with my method ofprocedure. l

' Similar reference numerals throughout the several views indicate thesame parts.

My improvements may be utilized to advantage in; connection with or asan adjunct to a known method of lasting shoes (though this is notexclusively its-application) and I will pro- 7 ceed to describe thismethod in a general way as an illustration in order to better explain myown improvements. Referring more particularly to Figs. 1, 8 and 13, Aindicates a usual type of wooden last to which has been applied an upperB. The usual soft insole C of the shoe has been tacked to the last at D;The raw edges E of the upper have been loosely drawn above the insole. Asoft pliable wire loop F has been stitched at G to 'the raw edge E aboutthe toe terminating in loose ends H. A similar loopI has been stitchedat K around the heel portion terminating in loose ends L; In accordancewith the known method, the lasting is accomplished by successivelytwisting together, and thereby shortening and contracting the respectiveloops, the loose ends H and the loose ends L.

. In the meantime, a suitable cement, known in the shoemakin'g art, isapplied to the edges of the insole C'beneath the raw edges E of theupper I with the intent of ultimately fastening the latter thereto. Thecontracting loops, according to intention, drawthe raw edges of theupperover the edges of the last in both instances and also draw themover the edges of the insole C to ac-:

complish the cementing. This is done in a machine embodying certainelements devoted to this end, which I illustrate herein, and will laterdescribe. Fig. 8 is an enlarged vertical section taken sub- 1 There is'an objectionto this general method which it is thought will beunderstood from the 3 foregoing description. .When the loop G, forinstance, is tightened up by the aforesaid twisting operation, thegreater force tending to draw the upper over the last is exerted at thepoint of the toe, because there is a direct longitudinal pull at thispoint that only later and progressively is In other -jbut withtheshortcomingspointed' out..

manner in which I remedy such defects, "and'I' will now proceed to adescription of the illustrat ed machine by means of which I do it.Reference will first be made to the last supporting and wire twistingmechanisms, which features, in a general way, constitute no part ofJmy,present invention.

Referring more particularly; toifFig's; land 8,:

1 indicates a jack pin supporting the lastA in the jack pin hole, whichit loosely fits in'the usual manner. The jack pin is-mounted in a mannerhereinafter described ona turntable 2 pivoted at 3 upon a base 4 helddown by gibs 5 and slidable upon a table or support 6 on a general frame*7 having legs 8. A spring latch 9 locks the turntable 2. with the base4 by engagingnotches 16 in the latter, selectively, to hold the last inpositions with the toe pointing forwardly or reare wardly 180 apart.Suitably mounted at arear' point on the table or support. 6 on a stem 11is a bearing head '12, upon which maybe adjustably tilted by means ofthe bolts. 13 a yoke I4. A spindle 15 has bearings 16 in this yoke, in

which it is bothrotatable and longitudinally. imovable. The rotarymovement is accomplished by a hand wheel 17, while longitudinalmovement. is effected against the tension of, a spring 18;

by means of'a cable 19 running over a pulley-2O supported on anextension. 21 of the yoke; This. 'fcable 19 may run to a treadle (notshown) or,-

other operating medium having a tendency to tighten it and draw upon thespindle. The point or head of the spindle 15 is suitably formed orfitted to take hold of the loose ends Hand L of the wire loops F and Iand twist and dra them through'its combined movements .offrotation andlongitudinal movementaforesaid. The. contracting of the loops tostretchthe upper in.

the old manner referred to is thus accomplished In the practice of myinvention, I provide novel means for gripping the lateral edges ofthe'upper and stretching it over the edges of the lastbefo're thecontracting wiresare put into operation at all;

1111 further so grip the upper upon the ends of the last that itmay notride out of place 'u'nderthe strain resulting in an evenlylastedshoe'that is not distorted from its properposition upon the Particularlyis this latter. true 'alsoj'with' respect to pulling the lateraledgesiof .the 'upper unevenly, whichmay result fromthe sole oper. ationof contracting the wire loops, butis remedied by the equalizing drawingand stretching means i threaded nuts 44. A hand screw 45 held againstlast.

that my invention contemplates and employs.

edupon the turntable 2. Upstandingl'egs 22 on the turntable support thepivot 23 of'acasting 24 where it is held rigid in different verticallyItilted positions by a locking bolt 25 on the lugs taking into aslot inthe saidcasting; The tilt-- ing adjustment is accomplished by means of,hand threaded-through the arm on opposite sides of screws 26 and 27threaded in the'casting and actsv ing'against the turntable2 onoppositesidesof j arms 43. Or, the contact of the shoes may be the pivot23. The jack pin 1 is PiVOtEdIIOIJ. casting 24 at 28 to tilt forwardlyand rearwardly slightly within the limits allowed by a stop shoulder 29and the opposite wall of the cavity in which the jack is placed. In thislatter wall is a spring pin 30 that tends to hold the pin with theshoulder 29 engaged. Slidable upon ways 31 on the casting 24 is a toesupport 32 for the last that engages it onthe underside in the mannershown in Fig. l, the sliding adjustment permitting it to properlycooperate with lasts of diiferent sizes. In con- 'sideration'of thelatter also, the base 4 carrying all the superstructure is slidable onthe gibs 5 of the table.

.' -When the last is placed upon the jack 1 and the toe support 32, itis held in part to resist upward pulling movement by cooking the jackpin in the socket thereof. This is accomplished in my deviceibymeans ofa jaw 33 preferably faced with a not too soft rubber pad 34 that engagesthe heel ofthe last at the seam and which forces it forwardly onto therest 32. Because of the contour of the heel, this jaw also itselfresists upward movement ofth'e last. It is mounted upon a lever 35pivoted at 36 on the same lugs 37 on casting 24 I that support the jackpin-and is articulated by a hand screw 38 reacting against the casting.By-

this means the last is held while first one and then the other of thewire loops F and I are twisted by the spindle 15 after reversing the.last end to end on the turntable, and it is also so held during theauxiliary lasting operation in conjunction with further means which Iwill now describe.

Referring more particularly to Fig. 8, the raw edges E of the upper, ofcourse, project upwardly above the insole C when the last is in place onthe machine, and I provide two pairs of jaws 39 adapted to grip therespective edges and which are vertically movable to pull them upwardlysimultaneously, so that they act against each other and stretch thematerial of the upper closely transversely over the toe portion of thelast. When they jaws are lowered to the gripping position shown in Fig.8, they automatically open and as their hereinafter described supportingstructure is raised, they are caused to first close together and thenmovebodily upwardly Also, when they are lowered and opened, a presserfoot 40 on the support engages the sole of the last or the insole C andlimits their descent, establishing a proper relationship with the edgesE. When the proper stretching tension has been imposed through theraising movement and before the jaws'are lowered again to release theupper, it is. clamped tothe last at the sides, so that this transversetension'will not be relieved until the.

lasting, is finished and while the longitudinal stretching is eiieot'edthrough the use of the wire are two arms 43 carrying rotaryv andslidable longitudinal movement is provided with right and left handthreads engaging these nuts respectively Pivoted to the upper ends ofthe arms at 46 are l levers 47. provided with clamping shoes 48 adaptedto engage the edges of the upper and hold then: tightly against thelast.

The point of contact of these shoes may be determined by set screws 49the pivot 46 and reacting against lugs 50 on the to spread the arms ,43or draw them together.

made self-adjusting to an extent through the medium of coiledcompression springs 51 surrounding each set screw. Upon relieving orbacking off the set screws, the arms 4'7 will be supported by one ormore of the springs, so that their pressure will be resilient andyielding or partially yielding according to the adjustment of the setscrew in the spring that is functioning, as will be understood from aninspection of Figs. 8. and 9. When the function of resiliency iscalledinto play, the clamping elements act as toggles, the centers 46moving toward the line determined by the centers 41 and the points ofcontact of the shoes 48 tending, in a general way, to straighten outlevers 43 and 47. Thiscommunicates an upward movement to the shoes 48 asthey grip the upper, causing them to stretch the upper at the sides ofthe last as they go into engagement.

All of this clamping m chanism just described is suitably mounted upon acarriage block 52 slidable upon the ways 31 independently of, but inthesame manner as, the toe support 32 to a proper position of adjustmentin accordance with the size of the last and also so that it may 'Ibeused on the heel portion, as well as upon the toe, if desired. Referringto Figs. 13 and 14 there is secured to this carriage block a squaredvertical pin 105, upon which slides as a guide a bearing block 106. Acavity 107 in the top of this block has slots 108 cut away in itsside-walls to accommodate the rising and falling of the handscrew 45 as,during adjustments the centers 44 swing on the centers 41. A disk orcollar 169 secured to the middle of the hand-screw occupies the cavity107 and is the element which holds the hand-screw against end-wisemovement.

It is the bearing block 106 upon which are formed the brackets 42 thatsupport the pivots of the clamping arms 43, and the slidability of the'block is for the purpose of raising and lowering the arms so that thegrippers 47 will engage at the desired point and at corresponding pointson lasts of different sizes. The guide pin 105 is provided with rackteeth 110 with which engages a spring pressed pivoted detent 111 on theblock to hold the latter in positions of adjustment to which it has beenelevated.

Corning now to the construction, mounting and operation of the grippingand stretching jaws 39, a frame post 54 and two guide rods 55 risevertically from and are rigidly secured to the general support 7 and arerigidly connected together at their upper ends by a crown piece 55. Atan intermediate point, the guide rods 55 are connected by a fixed bridgepiece 5'7 and fixed in the bridge member and the crown piece are twomore guide rods 58 parallel to the guide rods 55 and to each other.Slidable upon the guide rods 58 is a primary head 59 which is raisedbodily by a lever 60 pivoted at 61 to lugs on the bridge piece 57. Thelever being of the first order, one end engages in a channel 62 thehead, while a cable 63 is connected to the other end and to a foottreadle 64 having a spring pawl 65 thereon cooperating with a ratchet 66beneath former in the descent of the primary head.. In

the respective blocks.

the illustration given, the lowermost reach of the last,.is given. Were"the last thicker the head 59 would not beresting upon the bridge piece57.

Fixed in bosses 67 in the primary head 59 is a pair of transversehorizontal guide rods 68, upon which slide blocks .69 that are adjustedtoward and from each other by a hand screw '70 having right and lefthand threads screwed into A central bearing 71 for the handscrew holdsit against endwise movement and aswill be hereinafter explained, the twopairs of gripping jaws 39 are carried on these blocks and it is by thismeans that they are adjusted toward and from each other to be properlypositioned to grasp the edges of the uppers on lasts of differentwidths. 1

Secondary heads 72 constitute mediums through which the jaws are socarried by the primary head. They each carry guide pins 73 pinnedthereto, by which they slide vertically in the blocks 69, which slidingor raising and lowering movement is comunicated to them by levers 74pivoted at 75 to lugs on the crown piece 56 and engaging channels 76 inthe respective heads '72 in the same manner as the lever 60 for raisingthe primary head 59. The opposite ends of the levers are connected bycables 77 with respective ends of a sprocket chain 78 on a sprocket 79carried on a shaft having a bearing in a carriage 80 slidable on theguide rods 55. Another cable 81 connects this carriage with anothertreadle 82 associated with the treadle 64 and provided with an offsetlug 83 which picks up and looks with treadle 64 after a partial movementof treadle 82, so that thereafter the two move farther together forpurposes that will be explained.

On the opposite end of the sprocket shaft on carriage 80 is a miter gear84 meshing with a miter pinion 85 on the shaft 86 of a hand wheel 87having bearings in lugs 88 on the carriage. It is obvious that, byturning the hand wheel and, through the gearing, the sprocket '79, thechain '78 through the cables 77 will equalize the initial or normalpositions of the secondary heads 72, so that the two pairs of grippingjaws 39 will properly position themselves with respect to opposite edgesof the last to grasp the respective edges of the upper orone set of jawsmay be adjusted in advance of the other to exert a stronger pull on oneedge of the upper than on the other according to conditions. Springs 89,shown broken away in Fig. 1 and connected respectively at their ends tothe levers 74 and to the bridge piece 57, normally hold the secondaryheads '72 in the down position.

The gripping jaws 39 and the attendant mechanism for actuating them arerespectively mounted in the secondary heads '72 in the following manner:

Referring first to Figs. 1, 5 and 6, a lug 90 on each secondary head 72carries a sleeve 91 held thereto by upper and lower collars 92 and 93fastened to the sleeve on opposite sides of the lug.

Within the sleeve is a sliding plunger 94 having a pin 95 therein thatprojects a slot 96 in the surrounding sleeve and rests upon a lug 97 onthe corresponding block 69 that rises and falls with the primary'head59. A plug 98 secured in as- 5;;

sociation with the collar 92stops the upper endv of the sleeve 91 andbetween this plug and the upper end of plunger 94 is a coiled spring 99that holds the plunger down when the sleeve rises, de

veloping a relative movement between the two.

, insole.

The gripping jaws 39 are of. the form shown in detail inFig. 11 and arepivoted in pairs at 100 to the lower projecting ends of the plunger 94,

which .is transversely slotted up to the point shown in dotted line at101 to accommodate them. The shafts 102 of these jaws cross in themanner shown in Figs. 5 and 6 and on each side of the crossing point isan actuating pin 103 fastened in they sleeve and extending through aslot 104 in the plunger 94;. is raised, through the rising or asecondary head '72 and its boss 90, pin 103 thereon will close thegripping jaws 39, as in Fig. 6, and when it is lowcred, the other pin103 will open them, as in Fig. 5, which is the normal-position, as isthat of Figs. 1 and 8. Aside from the lateral adjustment,

this is the only purpose of the secondary heads,

which first move individually relatively to the primary head to operatethe jaws and then with it after the jawshave gripped the upper toproduce the stretching action. This will be made clear by the followingdescription of the generaloperation.

The treadle 64 is depressed and locked by the j pawl 65 on the ratchet,raising the primary head 59 and all of the parts carried by it, so thatthey will be out or" the way while the last with the upper thereon isadjusted in its support. Treadle 64.is then released, lowering bothprimary and Isecondary heads and carrying the normally open grippingjaws down to the positions of Figs. 1 and 8, ready to grip the edges ofthe upper. At the same time, the presser foot .0 on the primary headcomes down into engagement with the last. The

;;treadle 82 is then depressed. This raises the secondary heads alone,lifting the jaw controlling sleeves .91 from the position of Fig. 5 tothat of Fig. 6 to close the jaws on the upper but not move them,vertically. Through lug 83, treadle 82 then picks up treadle 64 anddepresses it, causing the primary head 59 to rise and carry with it,through blocks 69 fixed to it for vertical movement, the two primaryheads drawing the gripping jaws upwardly and stretching the upper. The

lateral clamps 47 are now brought into use to hold the upper stretchedwhile the treadle 82 is released and the secondary heads lowered torelease the jaws, whereupon the further lasting with the wires, throughthe spindle 15, is proceeded with as first described. Treadle 64 beinglocked depressed supports the gripping jaws clear of the last, thoughthe slight relative drop of the secondary heads on the primary head hasopened them. 1

It will be understood that a lasting machine constructed in accordancewith my invention may be used otherwise than with the particular methodof lasting with wire which I have described as being old in the art,though for the reasons stated it adds greatly to the results ob- 'tainedin such practices as in others. With the wire-lasting method, the edgesofthe upper are cemented to the edges of the insole C and with theprevious stretching afforded by my invention the wire loops are enabledto flatten the said edges down upon the cementin a more intimatemannerbeoause they are largely relieved from the greater strain ofperforming all of the stretching also and hence, draw flat against theWith this wire-lasting, it is also customary to cement the outsole tothe insole and upper, for which purpose the lasted bottom is ground toremove the stitching and release the wires, as well as, to subsequentlyroughen the surface to make a better binding for the cement Therefore,when the sleeve 91 and the outs'ole. In such cemented shoes,.it has:heretofore been difficult to draw the edges of; the upper uniformly overthe edges of the last: and onto the insole so that there will be anequal area of cementing surf-ace on the upperat' each side. This latteris just what my machine ac-x complishes with its equalized. grip uponthe two edges at the same'time.

I claim as my invention: v

1. In a shoe lasting machine, the combination with a last support, ofpairs of gripping jaws: adapted to engage the edges of an upper uponthelast and draw it transversely over the .same, means for pinchingtheiupper against the last" in a lateral direction, foot treadle meansfor operating the gripping jaws and hand-operated means foroperating theclamping jaws.

2. In a lasting machine, the combination with a last support, of meansfor engaging the edges of an upperupon the last and stretch it trans-'Versely over. the same, means for pinching the upper against the last ina transverse direction,. means for operating the upper engaging means,and means for operating the pinching means. one of said operating meansbeing hand operated and the other embodying a foot treadle.-

3. In a shoe lasting machine, the combination with a last support of apair of clamping jaws mounted thereon, and means for actuating themrelatively to clamp a last between them and hold an upper in positionthereon, each jaw embody' ing an arm pivoted to the supportand carryingat its upper end a rocking contact member and set screws on oppositesides of the axis of the contact member acting between it'and the arm tolimit the rocking movement.

4. In a shoe lasting machine, the combination with a last support of apair of clamping jaws mounted thereon, and. meansfor actuating themrelatively to clamp a'la'st between them and hold an upper in positionthereon, each jaw embodying an arm pivoted to the support and carryingat its upper end a rocking contact member and set screws on oppositesides of the axis of the contact member acting between it and the arm tolimit the rocking movement, together with springs associated with theset screws to act upon the contact member when the set screws are backedoff.

5. In a shoe lasting machine, the combination with a last support, of avertically adjustable Ibearing block thereon, said bearing block havinglaterally extending brackets, a pairof clamping jaws comprising leverspivoted upon the brackets and carrying contact members and ISO' meanscooperating with the arms and having a bearing in the bearing block foractuating the contact members to clamp a last between them and hold anupper in position thereon.

6. In a shoe lasting machine, the combination with a last support, acarriage movable thereon in a direction longitudinallyof a lastoccupying the support and a bearing block adjustable vertically on thecarriage, of a pair of clamping jaws mounted on the bearing block andmeans 'i gc on the guide, a carriage also slidable on the 150" guide, apair of clampingjaws mounted onthe carriage, means for actuating themrelatively to clamp a last between them andhold an upper inposition,thereon, a jaw. in thetiltable element adapted to engage the heel of thelast and cock the jack pin and means for operating the last-mentionedjaw.

8. In a lasting machine, the combination with a last support, and meansfor retaining a last and upper in fixed position thereon, of asuperstructure embodying vertical guides, a head movable on the guides,gripping elements carried by the head and adapted to engage oppositeedges of an upper on the last, a lever fulcrumed on the superstructureand engaging the headand a treadle connected to the lever.

9; In a lasting machine, the combination with a last support, and meansfor retaining a last and upper in fixed position thereon, of a super"structure embodying vertical guides, a head movable on the guides, andprovided with laterally extending horizontal guides, laterallyrelatively adjustable carriage blocks movable on the last mentionedguides, and gripping elements carried by the carriage blocks and adaptedto engage opposite edges of an upper on the last and means for operatingthe head to stretch the upper.

10. In a lasting machine, the combination with a last support, and meansfor retaining a last and upper in fixed position thereon, of asuperstructure embodying vertical guides, a head movable on the guides,and provided with laterally extending horizontal guides, laterallyrelatively adjustable carriage blocks movable on the last mentionedguides, gripping elements carried by the carriage blocks and adapted toengage opposite edges of an upper on the last and means for operatingthe head to stretch the upper, and adjusting means comprising ahand-screw having right ;and left-hand threads engaging the respectivecarriage blocks and held against longitudinal movement in the head.

11. In a lasting machine, the combination with a last support, and meansfor retaining a last and upper in fixed position thereon, of asuperstructure embodying vertical guides, a primary head movable on theguides and itself embodying guides, a gripping device adapted to engagethe edges of the upper and embodying a pair of jaws,

a secondary head movable on the guides of the jaws upon the edges of theupper, and means for raising the primary head to stretch the upper.

12. In a lasting machine, the combination with a last support, and meansfor retaining a last and upper in fixed position thereon, of asuperstructure embodying vertical guides, a head movable on the guidesand itself embodying guides, a pair of grippers mounted on the head andembodying a fixed supporting element and a rela tively movable actuatingelement for the jaws thereof, a head movable on the guides of the firstmentioned head and carrying the actuating element, and means foroperating the heads.

13. In a lasting machine, the combination with a last support, and meansfor retaining a last and upper in fixed position thereon, of asuperstructure embodying vertical guides, a primary head movable on theguides and itself embodying guides, a pair of grippers mounted on theprimary head and embodying a fixed supporting element and a relativelymovable actuating element for the jawsthereof, a secondary head movableon the guides of the primary head and carrying the actuating element,and a common .means for progressively first raising the secondary headto close the jaws and then raising the primary head .8 to stretch theupper.

. 14. In a lasting machine, the combination with a last support, andmeans forv retaining a last and upper in fixed position thereon, of asuperstructure embodying vertical guides, a primary head movable on theguides and itself embodying guides, a secondary head'movable on theprimary head guides, a pair of gripping jaws, a support-' ing elementtherefor carried by the primary head, a sleeve surrounding thesupporting element and carried by the secondary head, said sleeve beingprovided with means for, actuating the jaws, and means for operating theheads.

15. In a lasting machine, the combination with a last support, and meansfor retaining a last and upper in fixed position thereon, of asuperstructure embodying vertical guides, a primary head movable on theguides and itself embodying guides, a secondary head movable on theprimary head guides, a pair of gripping jaws, a supporting 1G0, plungertherefor carried by the primary head, a sleeve surrounding the plungerand carried by the secondary head, said sleeve being provided with meansfor actuating the jaws, a spring acting between the plunger and sleeve,and means for opcrating the heads. I

16. In a lasting machine, the combination with a last support, and meansfor retaining a last and upper in fixed position thereon, of asuperstructure embodying vertical guides, a primary 11;): head movableon the guides and itself embodying guides, a secondary head movable onthe primary head guides, a pair of gripping jaws having crossed camshanks, a supporting plunger for the gripping jaws carrying a pivottherefor, a 1115,.

sleeve surrounding the plunger and carried by the secondary head andfurther provided with pins engaging opposite sides of the cam shanks toopen the jaws in one direction of movement and to close them in theother, and means for operating the heads.

17. In a lasting machine, the combination with a last support, and meansfor retaining a last and upper in fixed position thereon, of twovertically movable gripping elements arranged above the last support andadapted to engage the opposite edges of an upper. thereon, a headassociated with and supporting said gripping elements and upon whichsaid gripping elements are relatively movable, and. means for equalizingsaid gripping elements in their relative positions upon the head.

18. In a lasting machine, the combination-with a last support, and meansfor retaining a last and upper in fixed position thereon, of asuperstructure embodying vertical guides, two verti- 13 5.

cally movable gripping elements on said guides adapted to engage theopposite edges of an upper on the last, means on the superstructureconnected to the gripping elements to raise one and lower the otherproportionately with reference 140,

to the last, and means for raising both gripping elements simultaneouslyto stretch the upper over the last.

19. In a lasting machine, the combination with a last support and meansfor retaining a last and the last, a rotary element on thesuperstructure, 9i

means associated therewith connectedat its opposite ends to therespective gripping elements for joint movement thereof whereby one israised when the other is lowered, and meansfor rais-t of an upper on thelast, said gripping elements being relatively movable on the head, adevice slidable on the superstructureguides for effecting relativemovement of the gripping elements with reference to the head, and meansconnected with said device for raising the head.

- 21. Ina lasting machine, the combination with a last support, andmeans for retaining a last'and upper in fixed position-thereon, of asuperstructure embodying vertical. guides, a head movable on the guides,two gripping elements mounted on the head and adapted to engage oppositeedges of an upper on the last, said gripping elements being relativelymovable on the head, a carriage slidable on the superstructure guidesand embodying a hand wheel, a sprocket and a sprocket chain on thelatter, connections between the ends of the sprocket chain and therespective gripping elements. whereby one is lowered proportionately tothe raising of .the other, and means connected with the carriage forraising and lowering the head.

WALTER I. BARNES.

